Mower with flip up mowing deck

ABSTRACT

A mower deck assembly which essentially “flips up” or raises from a mowing configuration to an access configuration with minimal manipulation of controls and manual lifting. A deck is connected to a frame by a parallelogram suspension which includes front and rear support arms. A rear of the deck removably connects through a height adjustment mechanism that includes the hook and capture device selectively allows the rear of the deck to swing freely so that when the mower is in a non mowing configuration. The deck has mounted thereon a plurality of pulleys, including blade pulleys connected by a single drive belt and driven by a single motor. One of the pulleys is a tension pulley that can be manipulated to disengage the pulley system. The front of the suspension includes a fine height adjustment mechanism.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This is a divisional of application Ser. No. 10/619,017, filed Jul. 14,2003 which is incorporated by reference herein.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a riding lawn mower and moreparticularly to a midmount riding lawn mower having a mower deck that isswingable from a mowing configuration to an access configuration havinga height adjustment mechanism that easily captures the mower deck formowing and releases the deck for access and a pair of arms which form aparallelogram when the deck is in the mowing configuration and extendoutwardly in the access configuration.

Prior mowers have included a mower deck that is mounted such that thedeck can tilt or rotate to a position conducive for maintenance of thedeck's under housing (e.g. cleaning, replacing blades, etc). Typically,decks of this type have been described as “tiltable” or “tilting” suchas in the United States patents Sameshima U.S. Pat. No. 5,079,907 andShroeder U.S. Pat. No. 4,779,406 respectively. Prior art structures havebeen complicated, hard to operate, expensive to manufacture and/orpresent other problems both in use in mowing and in trying to convertbetween a mowing configuration and an access configuration.

The present invention is especially useful in conjunction with amidmount mower wherein the mower deck is mounted between the front andrear wheels of the device. In such a device, it is desirable to makeconversion between the mowing configuration and the access configurationeasy and quick. Nevertheless, it is also necessary to provide a supportstructure for the deck that maintains the deck level during mowing andallows for easy cutting height adjustment. It is also desirable toprovide such a device that utilizes a single drive belt that can beeasily removed to allow for conversion. Also, a simple to use leveladjustment mechanism is desirable to allow for fine adjustment of decklevel that is required to correct for damage, tolerance variation or tomodify the deck to be slightly non parallel to the ground in accordancewith the desires of the operator.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present invention is directed to a midmount riding mower havingimproved mechanism for allowing a mowing deck thereof to be easily movedbetween a mowing configuration and an access configuration wherein anunderside of the mower deck is exposed for repair or maintenance.

The mower includes a support structure for maintaining the mower deck sothe blades cut in planes that are generally horizontal relative to theground. The support structure includes a pair of laterally spaced frontlegs and a pair of laterally spaced rear legs. The front and rear legsare pivotally connected to a frame of the mower at the same location.The rear legs are medially hinged having an upper portion that abuts theframe along the length thereof during mowing such that the front andrear legs along with a portion of the mower deck between pivotalattachments of the front and rear legs with the mower deck generallyform an adjustable support parallelogram to maintain the cutting bladesso as to cut generally horizontal to the ground surface.

Associated with and part of the support structure is the heightadjustment mechanism. The height adjustment mechanism includes a pivotbar with a radially extending operating handle and a pair of spacedradially extending arms jointed by an engagement bar at the distal endsthereof. The deck includes hook members that are sized and positioned toengage the engagement bar when the deck is positioned in a non raisedposition as the pivot bar is rotated by the handle so as to first becaptured and then raised. As the deck raises, the parallelogram formedby the support arms keeps the deck level. A pin is used with a blockingarm to keep the deck from inadvertently becoming disengaged from theengagement bar.

When in the non raised and non engaged position, the deck can be pulledforward on the support arms and thus the front can be raised to anaccess configuration by extending the rear support arms to an almostlinear configuration. The process is reversed to return to a non raisedconfiguration, rejoined with the height adjustment mechanism after whichthe deck is in the mowing configuration.

Unlike mowers that normally have a main drive belt and a secondary drivebelt that actually turns cutting blades, the drive belt of the mower ofthis application is a unitary single belt that is reeved to engage themotor as well as pulleys driving each of the cutting blades. A tensionrelease mechanism is provided to release tension from the belt to allowthe belt to be removed from a motor pulley and thereby allow the mowerdeck to be raised to the access configuration thereof.

A fine tuning level adjustment is also provided with each of the supportfront legs which allows fine adjustment of the alignment of the mowerdeck to adjust level that may be required because of variations due toconstruction variations, damage, or because an operator wants to havethe front slightly higher than the rear to better attack grass beingcut. The level adjustment includes a clevis that is pivotally joined toeach the front leg and which is adjustable from front to rear relativeto the mowing deck.

OBJECTS AND ADVANTAGES OF THE INVENTION

Therefore, the objects of the present invention are: to provide amidmount mower having a support structure that maintains the deckgenerally horizontal to the ground during mowing, but allows the deck tobe swung easily to an access configuration for repair or maintenance; toprovide such a mower deck having a parallelogram leg configuration toallow the deck to maintain a generally horizontal position at anycutting height during mowing and wherein a rear leg can be extended toallow the deck to easily swing from the mowing configuration to theaccess configuration; to provide such a mower deck wherein convertingfrom the mowing configuration to the access configuration requiresminimal manipulation of controls or apparatus; to provide such a mowerwith a support structure that extends to an over center configuration,so that when the deck is raised to the access configuration, theconfiguration is stable; to provide such a mower having a heightadjustment mechanism that operates in conjunction with the supportstructure to allow the mower deck to be easily converted from the accessconfiguration to the mowing configuration, allows for height of cuttingadjustment and helps support the rear of the mower deck all under thecontrol of a single adjustment lever by the operator; to provide aplurality of cutter blade pulleys and guide pulleys that are connectedby a single belt to a motor pulley, so that a single tension pulley canrelease tension from the entire system to allow disengagement of thebelt; to provide a fine height-adjustment mechanism to allow the frontof the deck to be adjusted in both height and angle to accommodate theparticular deck and desires of the user; to provide such a mower havinga height adjustment mechanism with a rod that can be captured by deckhook by simple movement of the height adjustment lever; to provide sucha mower having a mower deck that can be positioned forward of theremainder of the mower for ease of access and simplicity; to providesuch a mower that is easy to use, relatively inexpensive to make becauseof simpler mechanisms and especially well adapted for the intended usagethereof.

Other objects and advantages of this invention will become apparent fromthe following description taken in conjunction with the accompanyingdrawings wherein are set forth, by way of illustration and example,certain embodiments of this invention.

The drawings constitute a part of this specification and includeexemplary embodiments of the present invention and illustrate variousobjects and features thereof.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a lower heavy mowing deck and asuspension apparatus for the deck in accordance with the presentinvention.

FIG. 2 is a side elevational view of the mower illustrating the mowingdeck in a mowing and raised configuration.

FIG. 3 is an enlarged and fragmentary side elevational view of the mowerwith mower deck in a mowing configuration.

FIG. 4 is a side elevational view of the mower with the mower deck in amowing and lowered configuration and just prior to rear disengagement ofthe mower deck from remainder of the mower to allow flip up of the mowerdeck.

FIG. 5 is an enlarged and fragmentary side elevational view illustratingthe mower deck in a lowered configuration and showing the supportingmechanism for the mowing deck in a captured configuration in solid linesand in a release configuration in dash lines.

FIG. 6 is a side elevational view of the mower showing the mowing deckat a mid position between conversion from the mowing configuration to anaccess configuration.

FIG. 7 is a side elevational view of the mower showing the mower deck inthe access configuration thereof.

FIG. 8 is a greatly enlarged and fragmentary perspective view of a topof the mower deck and the support mechanism and adjustment devices foruse in conjunction with the mower deck.

FIG. 9 is a fragmentary and enlarged perspective view of a portion ofthe mower deck and remaining mower with a frontward support andadjustment mechanism thereof.

FIG. 10 is a fragmentary and enlarged bottom plan view of a portion ofthe mower deck showing an operator handle in a first tensioning positionin solid lines and in a relaxed position in phantom lines.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

As required, detailed embodiments of the present invention are disclosedherein; however, it is to be understood that the disclosed embodimentsare merely exemplary of the invention, which may be embodied in variousforms. Therefore, specific structural and functional details disclosedherein are not to be interpreted as limiting, but merely as a basis forthe claims and as a representative basis for teaching one skilled in theart to variously employ the present invention in virtually anyappropriately detailed structure.

The reference numeral 1 generally represents a mower incorporatingimprovements in accordance with the present invention. The mower 1includes a mobile frame 5, a mower deck 6 and a support and adjustmentstructure or mechanism 7 for joining the mower deck 6 to the frame 5.

The frame 5 includes a pair of generally parallel, laterally spaced andlongitudinally extending tubes or channels 12 and 13 that are sizedshaped and positioned to be generally parallel to the ground when themower 1 is operating as a mower and cutting grass and the like. Thechannels 12 and 13 are spaced by transverse members, such as fronttransverse member 15 and by plating such as floor plating 16 and forwardcowling 17, so as to form an overall solid structure to support themower deck 6, as described below.

The mobile frame 5 also includes a pair of front castor wheels 18 and apair of rear drive wheels 21. The mower 1 of the present invention is amid mount or underbelly type mower wherein all or substantially almostall of both the mower deck 6 and support and adjustment mechanism 7 islocated from front to rear between the front wheels 18 and the rearwheels 21 wherein the mower 1 is being utilized to cut grass, as is seenin the illustrations shown in FIGS. 1 and 2.

Mounted on the rear of the frame 5 is a motor assembly 25 which operablyprovides power to the drive and operate the mower 1 through well knownhydraulic wheel drivers driven by a belt and a power pulley (not shown)by the motor assembly 25. The motor assembly 25 also has a lower powereddrive pulley 26 which operably powers cutting blades on the mower deck6, as will be discussed below. The mower 1 of the illustrated embodimenthappens to be a zero radius turning mower in which each of the rearwheels 21 and 22 is driven by an independent hydraulic motor (not shown)which is in turn driven by the motor assembly 25. A joystick 27 ismounted on the frame 5 and is located so as to be accessible by theoperator to allow the operator to selectively control drive to each ofthe rear wheels 21, thus controlling the direction and speed of themower 1. Mowers of the same general type are well known in the industry.While the mower 1 of the present invention happens to be a zero radiusturning type mower and has hydraulic units associated with the wheels,it is foreseen that other types of mowers could readily be used inconjunction with the present invention.

The mobile frame 5 also includes an operator seat 29 which allows anoperator to be seated during operation of the mower 1 and to control themower 1 via the joystick 27.

The mower deck 6 has a top wall 34 and a peripheral side wall 35 thatdepends from the top wall 34 except in the area of a chute (not shown)for allowing discharge grass therefrom. A middle front roller 38 and apair of side front rollers 39 are mounted on the front or to the left ofthe mower deck 6. A pair of rear side rollers 41 are mounted on the rearof the mower deck 6. The rollers 38, 39 and 41 keep the deck 6 somewhatspaced from a ground surface that the deck 6 is traversing and helpsprevent scalping of the grass whenever the deck 6 gets too close to theground due to uneven terrain.

Three cutting blades 44 are mounted on the underside of the mower deck 6in a spaced relationship with one another and so that their cuttingpatterns overlap from front to rear in a manner that is well known inthe art. Each of the cutting blades 44 is rotatably mounted on a shaft45 which is in turn mounted on the deck top wall 34 and driven by ablade pulley 47. As shown in FIG. 8, also rotatably mounted on top ofthe deck top wall 34 are three guide pulleys 49, 50 and 51. A tensioncontrol pulley 54 is also mounted on the deck top wall 34 and ismoveable along a path to selectively reduce or increase belt tension, asdescribed below. As seen in FIG. 10, tension control pulley 54 isattached to a V-shaped lever arm 55 which is centrally pivoted about apivot 56 located beneath the center of the pulley 51. The lever arm 55is in turn attached to a spring 57 that is in turn connected to a secondV-shaped lever arm 58 which is in turn connected to an L-shaped leverarm 59 extending to an operator handle 60 and a fixed pivot 61 oppositethe operator handle 60 so as to allow an operator to swing the lever arm59 about the pivot 61 thereby also swinging the lever arm 58 about apivot 62 whereat it is joined with the lever arm 59 so as to selectivelyposition the tension control pulley 54. Tension applying and tensionreleasing positions for the pulley 54 and associated mechanism are shownin FIG. 10 in solid and phantom lines respectively.

A drive belt 65 is reeved or looped about each of the pulleys 47, 49,50, 51, 54 and the engine drive pulley 26 so as to provide drive powerbetween the engine and the blade pulleys 47 so as to rotate the blades44 when desired and when the tensioning pulley 54 is providing tensionto the drive belt 65. The drive belt 65 traverses a path that isgenerally planar except for slight variations due to raising or loweringof the mower deck 6. In particular, the tensioning pulley 54 providestension to the belt 65 when the operator handle 60 is in a firstconfiguration thereof, as is shown in solid lines in FIG. 10. Theoperator handle 60 can be selectively moved to a second configuration,wherein the tensioning pulley 54 moves to the location shown by phantomlines in FIG. 10 and which removes tension from the drive belt 65 andallows the drive belt 65 to be easily disconnected from the engine drivepulley 26 for manipulation from the mower deck 6, as described below.

A pair of shields 67 are also mounted on the mower deck top wall 34 incovering relationship to the outside blade pulleys 47 so as to reducethe possibility of an operator inadvertently getting caught between thedrive belt 65 and the pulleys 47.

The support adjustment structure 7 supports the mower deck 6 relative onthe mobile frame 5, allows selective adjustment of the cutting height ofthe mower deck 6 during operation and provides for selective positioningof the mower deck 6 relative to the mobile frame 5 for purposes otherthan cutting of grass. The support and adjustment structure 7 includes apair of front support arms 75 and a pair of rear support arms 76 and aheight adjustment and release mechanism 79.

One of the pair of front support arms 75 is positioned on each side ofthe frame 5 and pivotally attached to an ear 82 within a respectivechannel 12 and 13. The lower part of each front support arm 75 ispivotally attached by a connector assembly 83 that is secured to themower deck top wall 34. One of the pair of rear support arms 76 islocated on opposite sides of the mobile frame 5 and are pivotallyattached at an upper end thereof to respective ears 82 and at a lowerend thereof to respective ears 86 mounted near the rear end of the decktop wall 34. Each of the ears 86 has a rearwardly extending hook member87 near the top thereof.

Each of the rear support arms 76 has an upper section or portion 89 anda lower section or portion 90 which are joined at a pivot 91. The rearsupport arm lower portions 90 are essentially the same length as thefront support arms 75 and the rear support arm upper portions 89 areessentially the same length as the distance between the locationswhereat the front support arms 75 join connector assemblies 83 and therear support arms 76 join ears 86. In this manner, a parallelogram-likestructure is generally formed in conjunction with the arms 75, 76 andthat portion of the deck top wall 34 that extends therebetween. However,the dimensions of the parallelogram-like structure can be variedsomewhat as noted below. The rear support arm upper portion 89 is joinedto the frame 5 only at the ear 82; however, each rear support arm upperportion 89 is designed to abut against the under surface of respectivechannels 12 and 13, as is seen in FIG. 2 during operation of the mower 1during the cutting of grass or the like. In this manner, the mower deck6 can swing about the front support arm 75 and rear support arm lowerportion 90, while being maintained in a generally parallel configurationwith the frame channels 12 and 13.

Furthermore, when the mower deck 6 is detached from the heightadjustment and release mechanism 79, as will be discussed below, theframe 5 can be raised at the front thereof and the mower deck 6 can beswung downwardly and forwardly relative to the remainder of the frame 5,as is seen in FIG. 6 until the front support arm 75 and the rear supportarm lower portions 90 become generally perpendicular to the framechannels 12 and 13. Thereafter, the mower deck 6 can be swung still moreforwardly near the rear thereof so as to rotate the rear arm upperportions 89 away from the channels 12 and 13, as is seen in FIG. 7 so asto expose the underside of the mower deck 6 to an operator to allow theoperator to work on the mower cutting blades 44, to clean the undersideof the mower deck 6 or otherwise perform maintenance on the structure.

In certain embodiments, it is foreseen that a pin, hook or otherstructure could be equivalently provided on the front support arm 75 orthe rear support arm upper portion 89 to engage the opposite in such away as to hold the upper portion 89 in a parallel configuration relativeto the top of the deck 6 and in this way preform the same function asthe engagement of the upper portion 89 with the frame 5 that is shown inthe illustrated embodiment.

The mower deck 6 preferably has a slightly over-center configurationwhen in the exposed configuration, as is also seen in FIG. 7 wherein therear support arms 76 are stretched outwardly and substantially in linerelative to one another and the original rear, now bottom, of the mowerdeck 6 is slightly forward of the original front, now top, thereof, soas to form a stable exposed configuration to allow an operator to workon the device without easy collapse thereof.

With reference to FIG. 8, the height adjustment and release mechanism 79includes an elongate and laterally extending pivot rod 95 laterallymounted on and extending outwardly therefrom. Near opposite ends of therod 95 are a pair of rigidly joined lever arms 98. The lever arms 98that each have an elongate slot 99 near the distal end thereof throughwhich a capture rod or bail 102 is mounted so as to extend generallyparallel to the rod 95. A spring 104 is sleeved on each of the leverarms 98 and extends between the rod 95 and the rod 102 so as to urge therod 102 outwardly relative within the slots 99. A second spring 107 ismounted between each of the distal ends of the lever arms 98 and theframe floor plating 16 so as to cushion movement of the mechanism 79 atthe capture rod 102.

Medially extending outwardly from the rod 95 between the lever arms 98is an operator handle or arm 110 that is fixably attached to the rod 95and rigidly extending therefrom above the frame floor plating 16 and inthe region where the operator can access the handle 110 while in theseat 29. A stop lever arm 113 also extends rigidly outward from the rod95 near the channel 12. The stop lever arm 113 is positioned so thatswinging of the lever arm 113 by rotation of the rod 95 moves the leverarm 113 into abutting engagement with a stop pin 116 selectively locatedin receiver 117. In this manner the rotation of the rod 95 is limitedwhen the pin 116 is in the receiver 117 and the rod 95 free to rotatefurther when the pin 116 is removed from the receiver 117. It isforeseen that in some embodiments the stop operably provided by the arm113 engaging the pin 116 could be provided by other types of devices.For example, a slide, rotatable plate or the like could be operablyplaced under the handle 110 so as to engage the handle upon downwardmovement and wherein such device could be moved manually to allow anoperator to further lower the handle 110.

Each connector assembly 83, as is best seen in FIG. 9 comprises an outerU-shaped member 120 and an inner U-shaped member 121. The outer member120 is fixedly attached by welding or the like to the mower deck topwall 34 and includes a pair of longitudinally extending slots 124 ineach forward arm thereof. The inner U-shaped member 121 is slideablerelative to the outer member 120 and each forward wall includes alignedbores 125 that also align with the slots 124 and receive a pin 127. Thebottom end of a respective arm 75 is positioned to be surrounded by theinner member 121 and has a bore 129 that also receives the pin 127. Arear wall 130 of the inner member 121 also has attached thereto a bolt132 that extends rearwardly and passes through a bore 134 in a rear wall135 of the outer member 120. A nut 137 allows adjustment of the positionof the bolt 132 to slide the inner member 121 relative to the outermember 120 and thereby vary the angle of the front arms 75. This allowsheight of the front sides of the mower deck 6 to be adjusted slightly,if some irregularity exists or to even raise the mower deck 6 frontslightly relative to the rear thereof for certain cutting operations. Itis foreseen that in some embodiments, a connector assembly 83 may beused to connect each of the rear support arms 76 to the deck 6 or, wherethe top of the arms 75 and 76 are independently joined to the frame 5,then a connector assembly 83 could be utilized to connect either supportarm 75 or 76 to the frame 5.

During use, the height adjustment and release mechanism 79 functions inthe following way. When the pin 116 is located in the receiver 117, themovement of the operator handle 110 rotates the rod 95 and swings thecapture rod 102 about through a similar angle of rotation as is incurredby the operator handle 110 so as to move the mower deck 6 upwardly ordownwardly as desired by the operator to adjust the cutting height ofthe mower deck 6. Once the pin 116 is removed from the receiver 117, theoperator handle 110 can rotate the rod 95 so that the capture rod 102moves rearwardly and downwardly and disengages from the hook members 87.This frees the mowing deck 6 from the adjustment and release mechanism79. Further operation of the operator handle 60 associated with thetensioning pulley 54 releases tension on the tensioning pulley 54 sothat the drive belt 65 can be released from the motor drive pulley 26and thereby allow the mower deck 6 to be swung through the positionshown in FIGS. 6 and 7 to allow the mower deck to move from a mowingconfiguration thereof as seen in FIG. 2 to a maintenance configurationthereof, as seen in FIG. 7. The processes reverse to move the mower deck6 back into the mowing configuration thereof and the operator handle 60is rotated again so that the capture rod 102 comes into engagement andis captured on the hook members 87 and thereafter for the rotation ofthe operator handle 60 raises the mowing deck 6 to a desired cuttinglevel thereof.

It is to be understood that while certain forms of the present inventionhave been illustrated and described herein, it is not to be limited tothe specific forms or arrangement of parts described and shown.

1. A mower adapted to traverse ground comprising: a) a mobile framemounted on wheels; b) a suspension structure supported by said frame; c)a mower deck that is suspended from said frame by a suspension structurewith a plurality of cutting blades mounted thereon; d) aheight-adjustment mechanism cooperating between said frame and said deckto position said deck; e) a plurality of pulleys mounted on said deckincluding a tension pulley and a mower blade drive pulley for eachcutting blade; f) a motor mounted on said frame and having a motor drivepulley; g) a single drive belt that is reeved between all said pulleys,so as to follow a route that is generally in a single plane during usein the mowing configuration; and h) said tension pulley being moveableby a manual handle between a tension configuration and a tension releaseconfiguration.
 2. The mower according to claim 17 wherein: a) tension onsaid drive belt can be selectively increased or released by said tensionpulley by said manual handle; said drive belt being removable by handfrom said motor drive pulley when said tension is released so that saiddrive belt swings free to allow said deck to transition from the mowingconfiguration to an access configuration thereof.
 3. The mower accordingto claim 18 wherein: a) said tension pulley is mounted on a pivotal armmanipulated by said manual handle; and b) said manual handle has an overcenter lock position to secure said tension pulley in a tensionproducing position.
 4. A mower comprising: a) a mobile frame; b) amowing deck having at least one cutting blade mounted thereon; c) asuspension mechanism for suspending said mowing deck beneath said frame;said suspension mechanism including at least one front support arm andat least one rear support arm; and d) a fine adjustment mechanismpivotally joining a selected arm chosen from said front support arm andsaid rear support arm to an attachment chosen from said mowing deck andsaid frame; said fine adjustment mechanism including a horizontallymoveable mount that is secured to said attachment by a slideable pin andpivotally attached to said selected arm; said mount being constrained toallow movement thereof from front to rear by manipulation of a positionadjustment nut to allow fine adjustment modification of the angle of theselected arm relative to the attachment.
 5. The mower according to claim20 wherein: a) said mount comprises a first clevis mounted on said deckto allow selective movement relative to said deck from front to rear;said first clevis being pivotally joined to said support arm by a pivotpin.
 6. The mower according to claim 21 including: a) a second clevisfixedly attached to said deck and at least partially surrounding saidfirst clevis; said second clevis having an elongate front to rear slotfor receiving said pivot pin.
 7. The mower according to claim 22including: a) a bolt secured to and extending rearwardly of said firstclevis; said second clevis having a pass through aperture for receivingsaid bolt; and an adjustment nut located rearwardly of said aperture onsaid bolt adapted to allow an operator to adjust the position of thefirst clevis relative to the second clevis.
 8. The mower according toclaim 23 including: a) a gross height adjustment mechanism operating inconjunction with said fine height adjustment mechanism.
 9. The moweraccording to claim 24 wherein: a) said gross height adjustment mechanismincludes a pivot rod mounted on said frame and having a radially outwardextending loop and a radially outward extending operator control handle;said gross height adjusting mechanism further including a hook fixedlymounted near a rear of said mowing deck that is sized and positioned toselectively engage said loop as said pivot rod is rotated so as to allowan operator to engage said hook and loop and then raise or lower saiddeck.
 10. The mower according to claim 22 wherein: a) said suspensionmechanisms includes front and rear spaced support arms; b) said rearsupport arm being bifurcated into upper and lower sections; the upperend of each support arm joining to said frame near a common location;and said rear support arm upper section resting against said frame whensaid mower is in the mowing configuration.
 11. The mower according toclaim 26 wherein: a) said front support arm and said rear support armlower sections are approximately the same length and said rear supportarm upper section and the distance between whereat said front and rearsupport arms join to said deck being approximately equal, so as to forma parallelogram configuration for maintaining the deck generallyparallel to the ground while in the mowing configuration; and b) saidrear support arm upper section being swingable free of said frame toallow said deck to transition to said access configuration when saidgross height adjustment mechanism is disengaged.
 12. A mower adapted totraverse ground comprising: a) a frame; b) a deck; c) aheight-adjustment mechanism that is mounted on said frame; d) a capturebail mounted on said deck; and e) a hook mounted on saidheight-adjustment mechanism so as to operably engages said bail in amowing configuration and disengages said bail in an accessconfiguration.